IMPHAL: Agitating students of the Manipur Institute of Technology (MIT), who were driven out from theirhostels at Takyel here on Sunday, are currently staying at a nearby community hall. Locals are providing food and other support materials to them.
Demanding removal of MIT's principal in charge, Th Kulachandra Singh, the engineering students have been agitating since September 16. The governing body of the institute will convene an emergency meeting to discuss the matter on Tuesday.
MIT is a constitute college of the Manipur University (MU) and, currently, it has around 400 students, some of whom are from outside the state.
The striking students charged Singh with mismanaging the institute in various aspects, resulting in an undesirable academic atmosphere. The charged him with misuse of the institution's funds, failure to develop infrastructure and non-activation of placements for students.
On Sunday, police resorted to lathicharge, firing teargas canisters and mock bombs to disperse the students who were staging a sit-in protest in the institute's complex. The police action left at least 17 students, including one from Noida, injured. The police action came after clamping of prohibitory orders under section 144 of the CrPC at the institute.
"We have been staying in the community hall since all the students, including hostellers, were driven out from the institute on Monday afternoon. In fact, the MIT authorities had issued an order on September 19, asking boarders to vacate the hostels," said W Hemkumar, a student, on Monday.
Though the students have already submitted a memorandum to the vice-chancellor of MU highlighting their demands and grievances, no positive action has been taken as yet, complained Hemkumar.
"We will continue to agitate unless our demands are complied with for the welfare of the institute in general and the students in particular," he said. Soon after the hostellers, about 70 in all, took shelter in the community hall, local clubs, philanthropists and student bodies started providing them essentials like food, water and clothing, Hemkumar said.
The governing body of the institute will convene an emergency meeting on Tuesday to discuss the issue, particularly the charges levelled against the principal by the agitating students, official sources said.
The Democratic Students' Alliance of Manipur, while deciding to support the MIT students' stir, stated that the issue has snowballed out of proportion as the MU vice-chancellor was listening only to the institute's principal in charge. Though MIT collects placement fee, infrastructure fee, medical fee and magazine fee during admission, none of these facilities are available in the institute, said the student body's general secretary, A Thoithoi.
~toi
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